“Only the dead have seen the end of war.” Who said that?

He said it: Spanish-American philosopher and writer George Santayana, early in his career (Photo: Wikipedia)

Ridley Scott‘s outstanding 2001 movie, “Blackhawk Down,” opened with the quote, but attributing it to Plato, according to Plato expert Bernard Suzanne in Paris. One philosopher is as good as another, you might say, so it’s understandable that a good line from a modern philosopher like Santayana might be attributed to one of the most famous philosophers of all time (“they all look alike,” I hear someone saying). Or, the cynics might say, perhaps Santayana lifted it from Plato — after all, who but another philosopher would actually read the stuff? Who would know?

Suzanne’s sleuthing is impressive if only because it shows the murkiness of the issue. According to Suzanne:

The quote is popular among American soldiers (ask one — report back in comments).

Michael Takiff found it attributed to Plato by a U.S. soldier in Vietnam, writing home, in a book published in 2003.

No one has found it in any of Plato’s dialogues — at least, no one Suzanne can find.

For some reason this happens a lot to Santayana. Another famous quotation of his (“those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat”) tends to be misattributed to others as well. When is the man going to get the credit he deserves?

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